


Jasper, Early December

by genovivas



Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-14 22:48:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29178996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/genovivas/pseuds/genovivas
Summary: Charlie finally has the confidence to ask.





	Jasper, Early December

**Author's Note:**

> this was before i wrote in the existence of jacob so i’ll have to rewrite some stuff but eh too lazy rn

it's late night, somewhere just north of jasper, when charlie finally has the confidence to ask. he sits outside of the tent on cool ground, and everytime he breathes in, frigid mountain air burns his lungs. smee is across from him, idly poking the dying embers of their fire. calvin has long since left for the night, off to stalk around the forest, looking for memories and patterns in the endless pines. parvin and oscar have already retired for the night, pointedly curled at opposite ends of their pathetic excuse of an air mattress. 

charlie knows he isnt by himself, and yet, the vast emptiness of being alone grips him, even with smee sitting only a few feet away. he supposes its fair, if annoying; smee is far from exactly human, and even if it was, it wouldn't be good company. it speaks in cryptic, discomforting monotone at the best of times, and seems to care little for all the existential dread it invokes in the rest of the group. ever since the day in that barren, snowy field, charlie has been noticing more and more of smee's inhuman habits.

such as staring at a fire for three hours, expression unreadable.

charlie catches himself staring after smee raises its eyes to him, its expression morphing into curiosity. curiosity was one of the few emotions charlie ever saw tinging its face, even if its accompanied by a sharp glint to its eyes. he suddenly feels like that frog, sitting in cold pond water while a heron looks down on him hungrily.

"what is it?" it questions softly.  
charlie pauses for a moment. if theres anyone (or any*thing*, in this case) that could answer his question, he supposes smeekan would be it. still, he hesitates, caught up in wondering if a being as ancient and exhausted as smee would ever trouble itself answering the silly questions of a mortal.

oh well, he supposes. no time like the present.

"what happens after this?"

smee raises an eyebrow, prompting him for clarification.

"i mean for me. for us. humans. what happens when our lives are over?" charlie clarifies, suddenly feeling flustered under smee's endless dark eyes. smee is quiet for a long moment, so long that small, irrational part of charlie begins to think it's ignoring him. but still, it holds his gaze, seemingly contemplating. 

somewhere, a bird calls. there is no answer but the rhythmic rushing of the wind through the vast pines. 

"nothing" smee says finally. it stands up, walking around the fire to sit next to charlie. "absolutely nothing. there is no rebirth, no pain and no joy in death for humans." 

"would i have suffered?" charlie asks quietly. he hopes smee understands his implication.

"no. but you wouldnt have been happy either. you just wouldve. been gone" it says, shrugging its thin shoulders. charlie is washed in confusion and fear, and he feels compelled to run into the dark pines. he isnt sure if the sudden thrumming of his pulse is caused by the utter terror of finality in death, or if its the fact that smee seems uncomfortably more inhuman in this very moment then ever before. charlie's ribs feel constricted by the sudden feeling of dread gripping him, and he takes a shallow, shakey breath.

smee pokes his cheek. its face is back to its usual unreadable expression, and just as suddenly as it came, the tension breaks and the looming sense of dread seems to rush from charlie's body. smee watches him carefully for what feels like hours, but charlie knows is only seconds. eventually, it reaches out a pale hand, and laces its fingers between charlie's. 

"you should get some sleep" it says, and if charlie listens closely, he can almost hear the echo of hundreds of voices speaking on top of eachother.

sleep does not find him that night.


End file.
